'Seussical the Musical'

-Drama students from Main Stage Inc. put Seuss to good use.

-Drama students from Main Stage Inc. put Seuss to good use.

October 21, 2008|VIRGINIA RANSBOTTOM Tribune Staff Writer

MISHAWAKA Horton the Elephant, Gertrude McFuzz, Lazy Mayzie and the Whos of Whoville join to bring crazy characters to life from a menagerie of lovable Dr. Seuss books. "Seussical the Musical" will be performed by Main Stage Inc., the student drama program, at 7 p.m. Thursday and Friday at Battell Community Center. The colorfully rhyming musical follows the adventures of Horton, an elephant who hears voices coming from a speck of dust. Horton discovers Whoville, the smallest planet in the universe, living inside the tiny dust speck. Although ostracized by the other animals in the Jungle of Nool for believing in something he cannot see, Horton stubbornly persists to believe in the Whos. The Seussical production is directed by Jon West, Kari Gusman and Jeannie Chettleburgh. Horton is played by the oldest student performer, Mason Mackowicz, a John Young Middle School eighth-grader who has already been in 13 productions. Horton's love interest, Gertrude McFuzz, is played by Savannah Teller, a John Young seventh-grader. Horizon fifth-grader Meillyn McVeigh plays the Lazy Mayzie bird who persuades Horton to sit on her egg. The Cat in the Hat pops in and out of scenes narrating and keeping younger members and the audience on track. Bryce Yoder, a Horizon fourth-grader, is the cat with the tall, red-and-white hat. Jojo, the smallest Who, tags along on Horton's adventures. "No one believes in me, but I save the world," said Brynn Harty, a Prairie Vista second-grader. JoJo is the child of the Mayor of Whoville, played by none other than Mayor Jeff Rea dressed in yellow-and-white knickers, bow tie, argyle socks and saddle shoes. "The Whos wear crazy yellow," said first-grader, James Peck, dressed as a jester. First-graders Lia Chettleburgh and Alice Grover and second-grader Michale Zappia also play adorable Whos. "People should come to see the show because it has a meaning to it," Michale said. "No matter how small kids are or big grown-ups are, you can do anything you put your mind to." Onstage, youngsters prove that point. "It's fun to see their excitement and they're so full of confidence," Rea said. "Even though I do speeches all the time, they're a lot less nervous than I am on stage." Filled with a number of Seuss characters and musical styles, there's even a war over which side of the bread gets buttered. "Oh the thinks you can think when you think about Seuss." All tickets to the show are $5.Staff writer Virginia Ransbottom: vransbottom@sbtinfo.com (574) 235-6344